Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 254

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 254
Fire. Pillar
So this is what it means to have one’s words catch in one’s throat.
Sereo’s face contorted as he stared at the butler. His eyes blazed with the unmistakable look of someone demanding clarification—surely I’ve misheard something. Say it again.
The butler glanced nervously toward the parlor at the end of the corridor where guests had gathered, then lowered his voice further.
“Isn’t that right, young master?”
“Is that even something you’d call a rumor?”
Rumors have their limits! Now, when House Haiman’s fortunes are rising, they’re connected to those people?
Sereo rushed toward the parlor but quickly pivoted, heading upstairs instead. He ordered the butler, who scrambled after him, to bring his sister Alena.
Tap, tap, tap!
Crash!
The study doors flew open violently on both sides.
He strode in with heavy footsteps. Bookshelves lined with white dust were everywhere. Each time his fingertips brushed across the documents wedged in place, clear marks were left behind. Chetuhr, Chetuhr, Chetuhr…
“Ah. Found it.”
Sereo confirmed the rental business certificate related to the Chetuhr district and flipped through the papers. They were yellowed, their edges frayed, and carried that distinctive musty scent of age. Given how deeply the passage of time had settled into them, these must have been documents his father had entrusted to him during his administration.
‘Still, I’ve managed all recent income myself. If any money had come in under the name Haiman, I would surely have known. What could this be? For a baseless rumor, it’s far too specific. It’s ominous.’
Sereo’s brow furrowed as he read through the text with rapid intensity.
Currently, the family owned only one building in the Chetuhr district. A small-to-medium trading company operated from it.
But they had already been in contract for ten years, with three more years remaining. It was a place he’d known for a long time. He was confident it had nothing to do with House Haiman.
Slip.
With his hasty gesture of turning pages, one sheet fell out. Sereo reached to pick it up, then froze. Not a rental certificate—a deed of sale. He slowly unfolded the document.
“Damn it.”
A building in Chetuhr District, Section 3.
His father had sold it years ago to a man named Coaru Cobil—a member of the renowned Blacksmith family from the capital and cousin of the commander of ‘Co&Co’. That ‘Co&Co’ whose black armor materials had been confiscated by the Imperial Guards.
As Sereo let out an irritated groan, he heard restless footsteps behind him.
“I’m telling you it’s not true!”
“Lady Alena, please calm yourself.”
“Alena!”
“Brother!”
Sereo’s sister, Alena, stamped her feet indignantly. Her exposed shoulders were flushed red, clearly showing how heated she had become. The fact that the subject herself had heard the rumor meant everyone had already been exposed to it.
“Did you meet the second son of House Haiman?”
“This is insane! No!”
She held out both palms to assert her innocence. Sereo carefully folded the deed of sale and tucked it away, then rose from his seat.
“You have no acquaintance with him?”
“How could I have no acquaintance? I’m eighteen years old!”
“Tell me everything without hiding anything. I trust you understand how sensitive it is to be entangled with House Haiman right now.”
“I danced with him exactly twice. We had a glass of wine afterward. But you know, right? At parties, if you don’t have your nostrils connected to your ear canals, everyone does at least that much.”
Dancing in succession with changing partners was routine, and wine and food were inseparable from any party. Alena pressed her forehead and muttered in exasperation.
“If something had actually happened, at least I wouldn’t feel wronged.”
“Alena!”
“What! Why! Honestly, if you look at it straight, there are plenty of people worse than me! Name them!”
Honestly, and certainly, that was true. The rumor lacked sufficient evidence to back it up.
Among the central nobility, was there anyone who hadn’t conducted business with House Haiman even once? Anyone who hadn’t shown their face at social gatherings? Without question, no one.
“This is truly infuriating. From my perspective, this is someone testing us. Once the situation settles, it’s obvious what will happen to the Sereo family. They’re spreading baseless rumors to tarnish our reputation.”
Alena’s face flushed as she ground her teeth. She didn’t forget to mention that whoever was responsible wouldn’t be spared if caught.
Sereo entirely agreed. The problem was, who was it? He could trace the rumor back to its source, but whether he had time to do so before things escalated was another matter entirely.
“Sigh.”
Sereo tilted his chin back and exhaled heavily. Then, suddenly, Melania’s expulsion from the palace came to mind. The truth was trivial, but the rumor had spread vast and swift.
This was evidence that those spreading the rumor possessed subtle certainty. Certainty? Without evidence, that meant the person involved had testified directly themselves….
‘Melania?’
What would she gain by checking him? A family about to be annihilated.
‘Ah. Could it be they want to replace House Haiman and are trying to create flaws to divide us?’
Sereo, who dared to be mentioned alongside House Haiman and stood directly against them. With signatures gathered and the trial date confirmed, the justification was plausible.
Was this the shield Ian had spoken of?
He rummaged through his inner pocket and pulled out a cigarette. Still, it was manageable, wasn’t it? Formless rumors were no different from cigarette smoke. Even if House Haiman, drowning in mud, grasped at their own pant legs, they could simply brush it away.
“Alena. You look into it too.”
“Look into what? The rumor?”
“Yes. You have more presence in society than I do.”
“That’s true. I’m more popular than you are. Fine. Wait for me. I’ll go around and ask. But—!”
Alena ordered the butler to prepare a carriage and turned her head sharply.
“Next time, you absolutely must arrange for me to meet Count Ian.”
“Meeting isn’t the problem, it’s the current situation—”
“I know! I understand! I know what it means to be entangled with a doomed family. Am I stupid? I’ll be back. Whoever it is, if I catch them, I’ll deal with them first.”
She muttered that she’d tear out all their hair. Including Youngsik, House Haiman’s second son. What did a person about to die from ruined honor have to fear? Alena clicked her tongue and left the office.
“What shall we do, Young Master?”
The butler glanced toward where Alena had disappeared and asked. Since Alena would handle external matters, shouldn’t he handle internal ones? Sereo stood before a mirror and patted his collar into place.
“To the reception room.”
He would plunge into the center of the rumor and scatter all impurities. If Sereo had problems, other nobles wouldn’t be free from them either.
But if they’re only pushing me like this because I earned Ian’s favor, I cannot remain silent.
My pant legs are already stained with mud. What does it matter if I smear some of it on others? Who would criticize?
Creak.
Sereo stood before the corridor leading to the reception room. White smoke was seeping out from inside in wisps. It was smoke mingled with alcohol, music, hope, and gossip.
“Really? Dragon Kalin? I’ve never heard of it.”
“I haven’t seen it myself, but I’ve heard that House Haiman’s bank guards’ armor is made from it. A large quantity was confiscated in the Chetour district last time. It was a day when it rained heavily. The servants were in quite an uproar from dawn, saying the bridge was flooded and they couldn’t cross.”
“Ah. That day, I remember it. But that building belonged to Sereo? Then Sereo didn’t know about Dragon Kalin?”
“Perhaps he didn’t? He doesn’t do much besides rental business. Haha. Since it’s called black armor material, he probably pretended not to know even if he did. It was armor used in the rebellion, after all.”
“Whether Count Ian knows or not, I’m not entirely certain.”
“Wouldn’t he naturally know and overlook it?”
“There are many questions for something like that. Why specifically Sereo? A family of no consequence—why push him so hard while turning a blind eye? I think Count Eijein here would be more suitable.”
“I cast my vote for not knowing either. If you know, the thread snaps.”
“If you know, doesn’t that simply mean you trust Sereo that much?”
Words measuring and weighing the political situation drifted through the air like music. Sereo clenched his molars. There were limits to disrespecting a house, even so. To speak of such things in the reception room… If I had known it would come to this, I should have unhesitatingly handed over more noble names to Count Ian.
Yes. That would have been better.
Click.
“Ah, so everyone was gathered here.”
“Count Sereo. You’ve returned.”
“We’ve been waiting long. Have you seen Count Ian?”
As Sereo opened the door and entered, the vipers scrutinized him with cunning eyes, eager to know if he’d heard the rumors. Sereo smiled brightly as if he’d just arrived and removed his coat with deliberate casualness.
“Yes, I did. His condition appeared quite well. I also had an audience with Jhin.”
“With Jhin as well?”
The current sole heir and the most likely next Emperor. At the mention of seeing Jhin without hesitation, the nobles exchanged meaningful glances.
“He also appeared to be in good spirits.”
“Oh, how fortunate. Truly, you are remarkable, Count Sereo. Without you, how could we ever hear news from the palace?”
“Ha. Not at all. I heard that the trial dates for seven houses, including House Haiman, have been set. Count Ian is concerned about hostile forces, so he intends to conduct more thorough investigations for the time being.”
It was a way of saying that anyone opposing the palace beyond the seven houses would be filtered out. Sereo, without blinking an eye, turned to Eijein seated across from him with a request.
“Count Eijein. Now that I think of it, didn’t you once receive ship investment support from the Haiman Bank? I heard that Haiman conducted overseas business using the vessels traded at that time. Is that correct?”
“…That is true, but…”
His expression showed confusion about why such an old matter was being brought up now. His brow furrowed deeply, but Sereo continued without concern, speaking with practiced ease.
“Ah, so it is true. I thought I had misunderstood.”
“Why do you ask?”
“Merely out of curiosity.”
As Sereo smiled slyly, the nobles internally gasped in admiration. So he had heard. Since everyone here was connected to Haiman, this was a warning not to spread false rumors targeting Sereo alone. But this ultimately gave the shrewd nobles a clue.
‘Does Count Ian not know? About the current rumors.’
Because Count Ian didn’t know, wasn’t that why Sereo was acting this way? They sipped their wine and turned their minds over. If Ian didn’t choose Sereo, didn’t they also have a chance? That ‘very’ Sereo was boasting about replacing Haiman, so why couldn’t they do the same?
Sereo, who had pushed out Haiman, and another house that had pushed out such Sereo.
Whoosh.
Yes. Why should they follow Sereo so closely? A house barely maintaining its existence through rental businesses.
The nobles exchanged meaningless smiles and averted their gazes from one another. As they did, the pianist’s fingers struck the keys with increasing passion. It was the sound of another faction rising within the opposition.
* * *
“Count Ian.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“But I have something I’m curious about.”
“Please ask.”
Ian was still seated at his desk reviewing documents for approval. Jhin pulled up a chair before him and rested his chin on his hand, looking at the same documents Ian was examining.
“If we divide the nobles among themselves, won’t the palace become even more chaotic? This is a time when everyone must unite their strength. After all, the nobles are the pillars supporting Bariel, are they not?”
His round eyes were particularly clear and bright. Only when reading books with Ian, drawing pictures, or learning something like this was he no different from any other child his age.
Ian set down his pen with a slight smile.
“You’ve just stated the correct answer, Your Highness.”
“What correct answer?”
“The more pillars there are, and the greater the distance between them, the more stable and sturdy the structure becomes. What we are doing now is precisely that work. There is no need for everyone to gather in one place.”
“Yes, that’s true.”
“The number of pillars does not diminish. When one crumbles, another inevitably rises in its place. Your Majesty is the one who decides and permits such things.”
Jin closed his mouth and smiled. As always, the warm words Ian offered were truly pleasant to hear.
“When the pillars are sturdy, the roof does not collapse. If Your Majesty does not crumble, then ultimately the people living below will find peace. And setting everything else aside, the suffering that all must endure is already determined. The more the nobility and officials struggle, the better it will be for the people.”
“Is that why Count Ian labors even into the night?”
“Yes, that is so. I too am one of His Majesty’s pillars.”
Ian smiled faintly and picked up his pen once more. Then, with a clean stroke, he signed his name—expressing his intention to participate in the House Haiman trial that would proceed through the Judiciary.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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